New research on nanoparticles in food has yielded fresh insights about their impact on gut bacteria. Nanoparticles may influence gut bacteria (which are shown here under the electron microscope). Researchers from the University Medical Center of Mainz in Germany and colleagues from other centers in Germany, Austria, and the United States have discovered that the…
Times Insider explains who we are and what we do, and delivers behind-the-scenes insights into how our journalism comes together. “NO CRIMINAL CHARGES TO BE FILED IN DEATH OF WORK RELEASE INMATE” It was the headline of a news release issued by the prosecutor’s office in Elkhart County, Ind., on an October morning last year.…
Katherine Leon was 38 and living in Alexandria, Va., when she gave birth to her second son in 2003. She was discharged from the hospital, but instead of getting better, she recalls, she kept feeling “worse and worse and worse.” Five weeks after she had her child, Ms. Leon’s husband came back early from work…
A sudden shortage of one of the safest anti-anxiety drugs on the market has spread alarm among people who rely on the medication, buspirone, to get through the day without debilitating anxiety and panic attacks. Physicians are also expressing concern, because there is no information about when the supply will resume, making it difficult to…
Q. I heard that “natural flavors” added to flavored seltzer water are not natural, because of a loophole in the regulations covering additives. Is that true? A. Government regulations define natural flavors as those that derive their aroma or flavor chemicals from plant or animal sources, including fruit, meat, fish, spices, herbs, roots, leaves, buds…
Many mothers have to navigate a sea of advice from family and experts when it comes to feeding their babies. Nonetheless, nutrition educators typically focus only on the mother, even in Latino communities where grandmothers and other older female relatives often play major roles in caring for children. A new study shows programs to reduce…
IMAGE: Professor of kinesiology at University of Massachusetts Amherst. view more Credit: UMass Amherst In an ongoing study exploring walking for health across the adult lifespan, University of Massachusetts Amherst kinesiology researchers found that walking cadence is a reliable measure of exercise intensity and set simple steps-per-minute guidelines for moderate and vigorous intensity. Catrine Tudor-Locke, professor…
Boston, MA – Two chemicals widely used to flavor electronic cigarettes may be impairing the function of cilia in the human airway, according to a new study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Cilia are antennae-like protuberances that are present on 50-75% of the cells that line human airways. They play a…
For patients at the end of life, palliative care can prolong survival and improve the quality of life for patients with a life-threatening illness and for their families. But studies have found that racial and ethnic minorities are less likely to receive end-of-life palliative care than their counterparts. A new study conducted by investigators at…
IMAGE: This photo shows Dr. Lacey MenkinSmith (left) and Dr. Jerry Reves (right) in the Health Care Simulation Center at the Medical University of South Carolina. view more In a world where we can travel the globe by jet, diseases that were once thought to plague faraway places can now strike close to home. The U.S.…